Germany, October 2025: Review of the Brown Shrimp Management Plan’s implementation

News Germany Netherlands Denmark brown shrimp management plan MSC review North Sea

COFAD is reviewing the implementation of the North Sea Brown Shrimp Management Plan from the Brown Shrimp Cooperative MSC Group consisting of three units, Dutch, German and Danish vessels catching brown shrimp (Crangon crangon) in the North Sea.

The review is due to the MSC certification of the Brown Shrimp Cooperative MSC Group. Since December 2017, the fishery is successfully certified for the harvest of brown shrimp (Crangon crangon) in the North Sea (Source: MSC certificate). The respective fishery management measures and thus the regulatory conditions for the members of the Brown Shrimp Cooperative MSC Group are stated in the North Sea Brown Shrimp Management Plan (NSBS MP). Guidelines for the implementation and execution of the management plan, the Monitoring, control and surveillance (MCS) system, are included in the NSBS MP.

COFAD is reviewing that there is 1) a functioning MCS system and 2) a system of monitoring and evaluation of the performance of the fishery-specific management system against its objectives and, in particular, that there is an effective and timely review of the fishery-specific management system.